The Hassildor Dynasty
The House of Hassildor '''is a powerful noble house from Cyrodiil. An ancient family, the Hassildors are renowned for their wealth and influence throughout Tamriel. The House was founded during the Interregnum, sometime early in the 6th Century of the 2nd Era, by a the youngest son of an ancient Colovian King, Rex Hasildor. He took the name from the fortress he was commander of. After a bloody war of succession, Rex took control of Skingrad and the family has held the city ever since. When General Talos became Tiber Septim, the Hassildors supported the new Emperor and have ever since been a family of great influence in Cyrodiil. This, accompanied by their sense of duty and diplomacy, has led them to acquire great wealth. Second only to the Imperial Family, the Hassildor coffers have become somewhat legendary in their abundance. Another trait shared by most of the bloodline, is their affinity towards magic. Many a great mage has been born into the House Hassildor over the centuries. The Hassildors do much to encourage art, literature, and piety. Under their rule, Skingrad has become the centre for the art of poetry and song in the vernacular. Not to mention all the painters and sculptors the family sponsors. As a result, Skingrad is considered by many to one of the most beautiful cities in Tamriel. The current head of the House, Count Jonothor of Skingrad, is regarded as one of the Emperor's most trusted and influential advisors. His wife, Isolde, is a Breton Royal and his only daughter, Jannia, is Queen of Evermore. Skingrad Although Skingrad is far older than the Hassildor family, their influence in the city can be felt everywhere. Even the city's (and county's) sigil has become the on and the same as the sigil of the Hassildor Dynasty. The Twin Moon Crest can be found all over Skingrad, an eternal testament to the history and heritage that the Hassildors have created for themselves. A very important part of their influence over the centuries, has been the growth of the county. Originally, when the family first took control of the city, their lands stretched only from the city itself, to the White Rose River, where Fort Hassildor once stood. But, thanks to political maneuvering, diplomatic alliances through marriages, trade and (rare) warfare, the family have stretched the lands of Skingrad from Kvatch, all the way to Bravil, thus making Skingrad the second largest County in Cyrodiil, after Leyawiin. However, where they lack in size compared to their eastern neighbor, they make up for in population, as the County of Skingrad is considered the most populous in Cyrodiil, with plenty of baronies, market towns, villages and hamlets. Founding The Interregnum was a bloody period in Tamriel's history. With the fall of the Reman Empire some centuries earlier, the powerful lords of Cyrodiil returned to their ancient ways of fighting one another for power and prestige. No family was as successful in this, as the ancient House of Larich. Once rulers of the powerful Kingdom of Skingrad, the Larichs had lost a great deal of their power over the millennia. But with strong marriages and powerful alliances, they soon controlled most of Colovia: their domain stretched as far south as Kvatch, and almost reaching Chorrol in the north. But, with any family like theirs, peace and stability did not last. When Pontus Larich IV died, his four sons began a civil war that would undo everything their ancestors had achieved. Hoping to keep the peace, the lords of Skingrad and Kvatch crowned Andaril Larich II as King. He was the younger brother of the deceased Pontus, and unsurprisingly, his nephews felt their birthright had been snatched away. Instead of brining peace, as his coronation was intended to do, the kingdom shattered, each broken part supporting one of the five potential kings. And for the next twenty years, the once powerful kingdom of the Larichs, fell into war and strife. Andaril would rule for eight of those years. After his death, his eldest son took the throne, but he only ruled for two years. One of his cousins had him assassinated. The four princes would also each be crowned King, although none held on to it for long. As their sons continued the war and tore the land apart even more, Rex Larich, youngest son of King Andaril Larich II, began to raise an army to protect the common folk. Rex was not a man of ambition. Intelligent and kind, he had been raised on tales of knightly chivalry and courtly love, so to him, what his family was doing was abhorrent. Stationed as commander of Fort Hassildor (pronounced Has-IL-door), he was well protected from any of his relatives who may have hoped to besiege him. After raising an army, Rex marched on Skingrad, hoping to end the bloodshed with one final battle. But, treachery and scheming caused nearly every faction of the royal family to meet on the field of battle that day. Had they been united against Rex, his comparatively small force would have been destroyed quite quickly. But because each side fought against one another, during the thick of battle, Rex and his forces had somehow emerged victorious. The people of Skingrad welcomed the prince with open arms and the nobility proclaimed him Lord of the City, by right of conquest. Thus, Rex of Hassildor, became the first member of the now great Hassildor Dynasty. After taking control of the city, Rex, motivated by his success and persuaded by his council, planned to take Kvatch as well, to restore his father's kingdom. But it took a few years to build an army of sufficient force, and when he marched on the city, his cousin, the last of the "Four Princes", who was King of Kvatch at the time, remained within the city, refusing to meet Rex's forces head-on. Rex attempted to besiege the city, but during the night, the Kvatchian army raided the siege camps, causing panic among the forces of Skingrad. During the turmoil, Rex was stomped to death by his own horse. An unheroic way to die for a man considered a great Colovian Hero. Although Rex failed to reunite his father's kingdom, or to take back Kvatch, the people of Skingrad remember him as a great man, who liberated them from decades of harsh rule by the Larich Dynasty, as well as the man responsible for ending the civil war that plagued the nation. His greatest accomplishment though, is undoubtedly the founding of the Hassildor Dynasty, who control Skingrad to this day. In the centuries since his tragic defeat, the Hassildor's have become one of the most powerful families in all of Tamriel. Their sphere of influence can be felt in every province of the Empire and they wealth is second only to the Emperor. The Goldwine Rivalry Before they became one of the greatest families in Tamriel, the Hassildors faced a great many obstacles. After Rex's untimely death, his widow and their fourteen year old son took control of Skingrad, while the Kvatchian King came and besieged the city. He too hoped to restore the great expanse of the Larich Kingdom. However, the Dowager Queen of Skingrad, still mourning her husband's loss, devised a plot against his murderer, and sent the court mage to set fire to his camp. By the time the King and his men had time to put out the fires and realize what was happening, the remaining forces of Skingrad had begun firing arrows in rapid succession. Soon, the last of the "Four Princes" and the majority of his army was dead, and the fields southwest of the city were stained read with blood. Some say that the Stirid River ran red for generations, a constant reminder of the last battle between the Larich heirs. But the Widow of Skingrad had not yet sated her appetite for revenge. As a sign of friendship, to promote a peace treaty between the two cities, Lady Hassildor sent a casket of wine, barreled on the day of the coronation of Reman I. Such a gift was without doubt quite expensive and prestigious. And so, the casket was accepted by the nobles of Kvatch who feasted that very night and served the wine. By morning, they were dead. But a curious little detail about their deaths, was that everyone who drank the wine had a thin layer of gold around their lips. It is said, the Lady responsible for the poisoning, once spoke on the nature of this bizarre occurrence: "Greed is what caused the fall of the Larich dynasty. So let it be that the last of their blood should choke on the gold they so desired..." What she didn't know was that the last prince's wife was with child at the time and did not drink the wine. She gave birth to a son some time later. When the boy reached adulthood, his mother had instilled in him a hatred for the Hassildors. In response to the odd deaths of his family, he chose a new name to carry: Goldwine. A reminder that the plot to end their line failed, for he had lived. From then on, an ancient grudge existed between the two families, one that only ended with the death of Count Ormellius Goldwine, the last member of his bloodline. Early Years After a rather bloody beginning, seeing how descriptive and unsuccessful war could be,the family turned their attention to the wealth and prosperity of their people. It had been those very people who had welcomed Rex into the city years earlier. Their very position and "right to rule" had been granted to them by the people, so they became the priority of the fledgling dynasty. Luck was on their side, for the City of Skingrad was built upon greatly fertile land. The warm sun and rich soil allowed for successful harvests nearly every year and what was left after the population had been fed and the granaries stocked, was sold to other towns and cities, becoming the earliest foundation of the Hassildor fortune. However, the true genius of the early Hassildors was owed to winemaking. The wife of Rex's son was the only daughter and heiress to Lord Amiel, a man who had built a vast fortune through wine making. Knowing the influence volcanic soil had on the fruit, the new Lady Hassildor spent great deals of money buying and importing earth from around recently erupted volcanoes. Within a decade, the poor farms of the southern most territories were replaced by rich and abundant vineyards. Merchants and wine makers flooded to the ever-growing city, causing a boom in the population, in the economy and in the importance of Skingrad in the region. Soon enough, the city had grown so large, it had locked in both sides of what will be one day known as the Gold Road. The walls grew higher and thicker and now, to travel by road to the Imperial City from Anvil, Kvatch or the northern Valenwood settlements, one had to pay a toll to come through the city. The safety the road and the Hassildor guards stationed along it, combined with the relatively small toll, soon made this path the most popular (especially when compared to traveling through the dangerous forests), leading to a constant and steady source of income for the city and the family now ruling it. From fledgling lordlings, the Hassildors continued to grow, becoming wealthier, more influential and more powerful. Unlike their parent dynasty, or many of their neighbors, they never claimed a king's crown. Even the greatest and wisest of men could become corrupted by the ambition of a throne. Instead, they claimed to serve the people, as is the nature of a nobles duty. Yet in ensuring the support of their population, the Hassildors were careful to lead to a dependency, wherein they could exist without Skingrad, but not the other way around. Having secured their position in Cyrodiil, they now looked to expansion and advancement, a goal that generations of the family would continue to pursue for well over a thousand years. Pre-Septim Rule TBA! Support for Tiber Septim TBA! Golden Age of the Third Era TBA! Two Centuries of Mede Rule TBA! War of Succession and the Stormcrown Rebellion TBA! The Restored Septim Dynasty TBA! Matchmakers of Tamriel Originally from Skingrad, the dynasty first reigned over a relatively small region of Colovia, which they have ruled for over fifteen centuries (approximately 1,556 years), but a series of dynastic marriages brought Shardrock, Faregyl, Weatherleah, Dusokmoor and other territories (including the entirety of the West Weald and the south-eastern part of the Imperial Reserve) into the inheritance. The dynasty is named after their seat of origin, Fort Hassildor in the Southern Canton of Colovia. One of the dynasty’s unofficial, but more popular mottos is “Let others wage wars, but you, fair Skingrad, shall marry”, which indicates the talent of the Hassildors to have their members intermarry into other high-ranking and royal houses, to make alliances and inherit territory. Countess Mariana Aliza Hassildor is recognized quite notably for it and is sometimes referred to as the ‘Great-Grandmother of Tamriel’. Members of the family have married into various Breton, Reguard and Cyrodilic royalty, not to mention countless families of nobility and gentry throughout all of Tamriel. Achievements Along with with their talent for amassing wealth and alliances through marriage, diplomacy and intrigue, the family is also recognized for their great piety and participation in the church hierarchy. The family has had three High Priests in their bloodline, the latter two of which were recognized especially for commissioning great works of art, including paintings, religious iconography, statues and architectural structures (including the current Temple of the One). Numerous members of the family have also held controlling positions in the famous East Empire Trading Company, where they still retain a large amount of shares and investments. Some members of the family have also created much smaller trading companies of their own over the centuries, however few rarely became truly successful. In fact, most were sold (with great profit) to the EETC. Although not a city with any port access, the Hassildors do control a small, well armed fleet, used to protect their cargo (and personal) ships from pirates. Like other ruling families of Cyrodiil, they have dominated their county’s government completely, allowing for an environment where art and humanism could flourish, even at times when the ruling Emperors and High Priests were not as liberal in their views. Famously, during the reign of Attrebus Mede I, a High Priest had denounced a theologian philosopher from Bruma as a heretic, yet the Hassildors allowed him sanctuary in Skingrad (much to the ire of the High Priest and his followers). The Bank of Skingrad (created from the remnants of the extremely famous Goldwine Bank) was one of the most prosperous and most respected in Tamil for nearly two hundred years, until it’s dissolution shortly before the restoration of the Septim Dynasty, during the eight months when part of Augustus Mede’s army besieged Skingrad and held the main branch of the Hassildors as virtual prisoners in their own castle. There are some estimates that the family were, for a period of time, the wealthiest family in Tamriel. From this base, they acquired great political power, initially in Colovia and later, in wider Cyrodiil and Tamriel. Although now they take a second lace to the Imperial Family, Skingrad and the Hassildors are regarded as one of the most prosperous cities and richest families in Tamriel, respectively. Patronages TBA! Family Tree TBA! Trivia * The '''House of Hassildor, as it appears in the Burned-Mane Canon, is based primarily on the Ramnulfids (also knows as the House of Poitiers), who ruled the ancient duchy of Aquitaine in the 9th through 12th centuries. Some aspects have also been adopted from the House of Anjou. ** Their prominence in the realm of trade is based somewhat on the Medici Family, while their famed marriages are based on the Habsburg Family. To this day, few families could claim such an ancient and distinguished history as that of the Hassildor Dynasty. *** Specifically Countess Mariana Aliza, who is based on Empress Maria Theresa of Austria. * Some say that Count Timoth Hassildor, grandfather of the Count Jonothor, had portraits of the Goldwines displayed in the dining hall of Castle Skingrad. When asked, he said it is so that they could see him, alive, while they were all dead. * Countess Mariana Aliza Hassildor, the "Great-Grandmother of Tamriel", is a direct ancestor of not only the Counts of Skingrad, but also of Bruma, Chorrol, Kvatch, Leyawiin and Anvil, as well as the royal lines of Wayrest, Daggerfall, Camlorn, Northpoint, Jehenna, Evermore, Elinhir, Rihad, Gilane, Sentinel, Solitude, Windhelm, Whiterun, Markarth and the short lived Human Kingdom of Stormhold. As such, she has truly earned her famous nickname. ** Both Septim Dynasties (of the 3rd Era and of the Restored Empire) are also descended from her. Category:The Burned-Mane Canon Category:Factions Category:Bloodlines Category:Dynasties